To the Flame
by DarkxPrince
Summary: Behind every great man is a great woman, and every man is drawn to her. Sometimes the man doesn't realize it, but sometimes he tries to stop it. You will be drawn to her, and it doesn't matter what you try.
1. Chapter 1

This came to me when I was reading something else and it wouldn't leave me alone. I thought it was just going to be a oneshot, but now I'm not so sure. Well, read on and I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

He didn't know what to think anymore. At first he thought he could beat the demon within him, but now…now he wasn't so sure he could. She was standing behind him, her arms wrapped around his shoulders, her lips barely an inch from his ear. She was at it again, she was trying to break him, whether to free herself or for some other motive he couldn't tell. But he knew one thing…it was tempting.

He was tempted to accept what she was whispering to him, and yet part of him wanted to deny it all. _"I'll make them see me,"_ his voice was barely a whisper itself.

"_**The village will never see you as you, they're always going to see me first,"**_ her reply was almost automatic, as if she had known what he would say. Though it really didn't surprise him, she had been sealed inside of him all of his life. She knows more about him then he knows about himself.

"_I'll make them accept me."_ It was something he had always told himself. If the village wouldn't willingly see him then he'd make them see that he wasn't the fox. And yet, that single phrase sounded so…fake, fake just like the smile he always put on around his friends and the villagers.

"_**They're kill you before they accept you."**_ It was so blunt and yet it was true. The villagers always feared him…feared the power within him. They feared it so much that when he was in the academy the teachers did their best to make sure that he failed everything.

"_I'll become Hokage."_ It was his dream, to be the strongest and become Hokage. At first, when he was young and naïve, he thought that is he became Hokage then he would finally be accepted by the village.

"_**They won't allow you to become Hokage."**_ No, that couldn't be right…could it? It was Tsunade's choice who replaced her, right? She has faith that he would be the right one for job, right? She understood that he was the only one who was to replace her, right?

"_I'll become so strong that they'll have no choice in the matter."_ Yes that's what he'll do. He'll force them to make him Hokage, force the, to see that they were wrong about him.

"_**No matter what you do, they'll still fear you. Fear the power you possess. As your strength grows, so does their fear. Their fear will turn to hatred, and they will act on that hatred. They'll attack you until you're dead."**_ That would happen wouldn't it? He tried to convince himself that that wouldn't happen. That the villagers would never attack, that he would be safe from harm.

He tried to think of a reply, but nothing came to him. He was beginning to wonder if he could beat her, yet a part of him knew that he couldn't and she was right in every way, shape and form. He was falling to this…vixen, and he couldn't keep up the fight against her anymore. _**"Take my power, become my mate, and show these foolish mortals what a true demon is capable of."**_

He couldn't do that…could he? Could he become that one thing that he always feared becoming? Could he turn into what the villagers always called him? A demon? No, he wasn't like that. He wasn't a demon and he wouldn't simply give up on his dream; his dream of being acknowledged for who he really is and not what he holds inside of him.

"_**They all lied to you. They told you that you were an orphan whose parents died. And yet, every time you asked Sarutobi who your parents were he always said that they were ninja who died on a mission. I guess, in a sense it was true, but it wasn't a mission. Your father died stopping me from destroying the village and your mother was assassinated by the very ninja she fought with. They all deceived you; they never cared about you or how you felt."**_

That's right, he only recently found out about his parents. His father, Konoha's Yellow Flash and Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze. His mother, a ninja of the Village Hidden in the Whirlpool, Kushina Uzumaki. Why didn't anyone ever tell him about hem? Why was it all hidden from him? He understood that his father had many enemies in his ninja carrier. But didn't they believe that he could protect himself?

"_**You know the answer to that. They never trusted you with that information. They said it was because you weren't mature enough to handle the truth, but the real truth is that they had no faith in your abilities."**_ Here she lowered her lips to softly kiss his neck, _**"But not I, I have always had faith, I have been, and I am the only one you could truly trust."**_

She was right and he knew it, though it was only half truthful. She's been with him all his life because she was sealed inside of him when she attacked the village. She knows what happened to him because she's sealed inside him, and she is the reason why he is hated by the villagers. If she had never attacked the village then he would be living a normal life with both of his parents. And yet he knows not to blame it all on her.

A demon she may be, spawned from the darkest pits of hell, sadistic bitch even, but she is not blood thirsty. She would not have attacked the village was it not forced upon her. Was she not summoned by that bastard Uchiha, she would still be living in hell. If anyone should be blamed for all of this then it would be Madara Uchiha. It was he who summoned the great kitsune from hell. It was he who forced her to attack Konoha.

She kissed his neck again, _**"Become my mate, become the greatest demon to ever live and punish those who have done you harm."**_ He was afraid, not because he was scared of the demon, no, he would never say it out loud but he would never fear her. He was afraid of himself. He was starting to fear his own reaction, because he found himself liking the idea. He was falling for her and her promises; he knew he would not last long.

As if sensing this she continued, _**"If you will not enact vengeance then at least become my mate. Please, it's been so long since I held a man in my arms."**_ So, now she was out right seducing him, was she? But why did it sound so damn good to him? What was it about all of this that made him want to accept her offer? What happened to that strong willed teen he used to be?

"_**He was saved from ignorance; he saw the world for what it truly is."**_ How could she be right? How could she have the answers for every question he asked? How could he give in this easily? No, no he was then this, he could be stronger then she is. He had to remember what he fought for…all of his friends that depended on him to be there to help them. He couldn't turn against them and side with her, he couldn't.

"_**Where were your so called 'friends' when you were all alone crying because you had no clue as to why the villagers beat you? Where were they when you tried to end your own life because you couldn't take it anymore? I was the warmth that kept you warm at night; I was the one that held you in your dreams while you slept; I was the one that wouldn't **_**allow**_** you to die. I cared, I've always cared."**_

How did she know about _that_? But then should he really be surprised? He thought that no one saw, he thought he was alone, but he had always had a feeling that he wasn't. Like someone was watching over him, but at the time his small and fragile mind could wrap around the idea. So she was the one that had kept him warm when he was alone and cold at night. She was the reason why he thought he saw a beautiful red-head every time he awoke.

"_**But then I realized something. I didn't just care about you, I liked…no, I didn't just like you. I loved you. I didn't want to admit it at first, hell; I tried to deny it with everything I had. Eventually I stopped fooling myself and accepted it, I love you, and I will do everything in my power to protect you,"**_ she leaned down to kiss his neck again. _**"So please, please let me help."**_

A melody drifted out of her mouth, soft, caring, loving. It soothed his mind and body, and yet it held an undertone of something else. He couldn't say that the tune was seductive, no that wasn't it. But it was just so peaceful, so…his eyes were starting to drop. At this point it was getting difficult to think clearly.

"_**I can give you the love, care and acknowledgement that you have always dreamed of having."**_

"_The villagers are right…I am a demon."_ He didn't know why he even said this. He didn't know why he thought of it. But with everything that has happened recently he couldn't help but think that.

Her anger flared. How dare he think that! How dare he fall to the ignorant cries of arrogant beings! _**"No, no you never were and never will be. It is not our blood that dictates who or what we are. What makes us who we are is what we believe and how we choose to act. You body and blood may become demonic but your soul will always remain the same."**_ Her anger diminished, she continued with her soft melody.

So much confusion, so many questions but only one solution and he knew it. He was fighting a losing battle, his will was diminishing, but at the same time something else was raising up. There was no use fighting against her, he just couldn't bring himself to deny her. But no, no he wasn't like this. He didn't just give up, he didn't just quiet, he fought back against all odds. He was all those things, so why couldn't he fight her?!

"_Why…why are you doing this?"_

Oh there're so many answers that she could have given. She could have told him the truth of why she'd doing this, though if she was to be truthful with herself she didn't care about revenge anymore. She didn't care about getting back at the man who sealed her into his own child. Nor was she interested in destroying the village that mistreated her new, or soon-to-be new mate. No, she wouldn't deny the fact that she fell in love with him, she simply couldn't anymore.

_**Why am I doing this?"**_ her voice was full of mirth, _**"Is it so hard to believe that I have fallen in love with you? That the reason that I allow you to use my power is not simply because I die if you die? No, I help you because I love you because I care for you because I acknowledge you, and I want the best for you. That's why I want you to become my mate. Let me protect you, let me love you, just let me help you."**_

His will shattered. He didn't know how or when but all he knew was that he couldn't fight her anymore. He couldn't deny her anymore and he couldn't deny his own feelings. Some deeper, darker part of his conscience had always wanted this. To be able to hold someone that you cared for, to be able to be with someone that you loved, to be able to cry into their shoulder when you're sad. It was all staring him in the face and he was being too…honorable to take it. He didn't care any more. He didn't care what his friends thought and he didn't care what the villagers thought. This was the chance to have what he always wanted, a family and he was taking it.

It never left his mouth, but she must have known one way or another, for she sank her teeth into his neck. Red fire erupted around them, the red glow spreading until the entire room glowed red, effectively shattering the seal that held her at bay. The bars melted, and chunks of the concrete fell into the water of the sewer. The red glow that was her power rebuilding what fell away, making it new, making it better then it was. When he opened his eyes he noticed that he was in his apartment. He tried to sit up but noticed a weight on his chest.

When he looked down he saw a mop of red hair, with two fox ears poking out on top, had he looked under the blanket he would have seen the nine fox tails attached to the base of her spine. As gently as he could he removed her from atop of him, causing her to whimper slightly at the lost of his body heat. He went into the bathroom to take a fast shower. When he was down and he looked into his mirror he saw several different features. One was that his eyes remained a crystal blue, but the pupil was now a slit. He too, had fox ears poking out of his hair which now reached down to his shoulders, along with nine fox tails swaying behind him.

He was about to get dressed when he was surrounded by a red mist. This mist condensed around his body until it formed armor the likes of which he had never seen. Around the collar were red eagle like feathers, a red cape hung behind him that split down the middle causing it to end in two points. His bright blond hair was done into a ponytail that was held together by an inch of thin rope, though it was still spiky. He would have continued to look at his new found armor when she entered.

She was wearing a dark purple kimono that did nothing to hide her figure. In fact the V-shaped neckline was so low that it showed off her chest for all to see. The kimono also hid her left leg from view but showed off all of her right leg. Her red hair was done up in an elaborate bun, but what hair wasn't in the bun fell to the small of her back where her nine fox tails were clearly displayed. Without saying a single word he pulled her to him and kissed her. His tongue licked her bottom lip and she opened her mouth in invitation. After several minutes of their tongues fighting each other, they broke apart for air. When she was breathing normally again she asked, "What will you do now?"

His answer wasn't verbal but instead the two disappeared in a swirl of flames only to reappear in the village's council chamber. The reaction of said council was…amusing to say the least. They all started to shout different things, wanting to know who he was and what he was doing there. After several minutes of this Tsunade had enough and slammed her hand into the table causing it the crack slightly. Tsunade stared at them for a few seconds before realization dawned on her and she said, "Naruto, is…is that you?" He only nodded in response.

That did not go over well with the council, one councilman who was either stupid or brave shouted, "What are you doing her demon?!"

Any action Tsunade may have taken was interrupted by a read blur. They looked over at the councilman that had shouted, only to see the woman that had come in with Naruto had her hand through the guy's chest and holding his heart. "You will address my mate with more respect then that," she said before she closed her hand crushing the fool's heart. She withdrew her hand and took her seat next to Naruto who had already sat down in a seat that had not been used since that great kitsune attacked the village.

"Naruto, what are you doing here?" Tsunade asked.

"I am here to take my rightful place on this council, to replace the seat that my father, Minato Namikaze held. And this is my mate, Kyuubi no Kitsune."

Every single face paled when they heard her name. Another foolish council man shouted, "That demon must die! Kill it…" Anything further he may have said was cut off as a sword embedded itself into the wood of his chair inches from his head. The sword itself was straight and double edged. The blade stopped a good six inched from the hilt where the image of a fox's head made of gold was. The blade shot back into Naruto's hand.

"Threaten my mate again and I won't miss," his voice was laced with venom. It was time to put these foolish bastards that they couldn't order him around anymore. It was time to show them that he wouldn't bow to their every command, but first a name change was in order for his new power, his new life, his new _family_. "Before we continue, I will no longer go by Naruto Uzumaki, nor will I be called Naruto Namikaze. My name now, is… NOBUNAGA ODA!"

* * *

Now who saw that one coming? Why did I use Nobunaga? Because I like him. And to those who don't know who he is google "Samurai Warriors 2: Nobunaga" you'll get your answers. And I'll give a treat to those who can guess where I thought of Kyuubi's new look, though it really isn't that hard. So stay tuned for the next chapter...whenever I can think of it.


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry it took so long to get this second chapter up. A week ago it was ready but my computer decided to be a pain and erased all of my files, so I had to rewrite all of it. But now everything is back in order, so enjoy and please, please leave a review after you finish reading.

* * *

Kyuubi, or as was her real name Nouhime or Noh, was having the time of her life. At first she loathed the idea of sparing this village from her wrath, she was still in half a mind to destroy it, but she knew her mate wouldn't like that. He had told her to 'not kill' anyone, that didn't mean she couldn't torture them. Oh how she loved to hear people scream out for mercy…though not as much as she loved it when her mate screamed out her name during their nightly, um, sessions.

Though no matter how much fun she was having, her revenge was still incomplete. No, she wasn't going to destroy the village; she gave up on that when Nobunaga was made Hokage. She was going to kill…no, brutally torture Madara Uchiha! No one controls her like some pet! She was not a puppet to be used! ANYONE with the name Uchiha was going to be slowly tortured before she sent them down into the pits of hell! Though, there was something off about that one Uchiha, Itachi was it? It bothered her that Itachi never intentionally hurt her mate whenever the two met, well, that's a matter for a different time.

Currently she was heading towards the newly remolded Ichiraku Ramen Restaurant where the rest of 'Konoha's Twelve', as teams seven, eight, ten, and Gai's team were being called, were meeting. She only recently found out about it the morning when Nobunaga had told her of the gathering. In all honesty, she really didn't want to go; the only reason she was going was because he asked her to come. She still wouldn't trust many of his so called 'friends', though none so much as that pink haired bitch! God, was she annoying, always "Sasuke this" and "Sasuke that" and "Sasuke is soooooooo much better". It was enough to make Noh want to rip out Sakura's throat and force feed it to her. And that flee bitten Inuzuka was a pain in the ass, enough said.

She'll admit, however, that not all of his friends were bad, like the Hyuga Heiress. She had been kind to Nobunaga when they were still in the ninja academy. She knew that the Hyuga girl was in love with her mate, not that she really minded since technically Nobunaga was the last of his clan and he was allowed to have more then one wife. Who knows, maybe the Hyuga girl will be more fun then she lets on. But that was a topic for a different time.

As soon as she entered the restaurant, she was immediately angered. Why was she angered, you may ask? Well the answer was that one Sakura Haruno was once again going on and on about her 'Sasuke-kun'. This did nothing to help her already foul mood. Now normally she would be able to ignore what was being said, however when Sakura stated that "Sasuke would have made a so much better Hokage" Noh had enough. Before anyone knew what was happening Noh had Sakura pinned to the wall, a blade pressed against the pink-haired ninja's throat.

"Enough wrench, I've had enough of you and your precious 'Sasuke-kun'. Nobunaga will _always_ be stronger then _any_ Uchiha, and certainly _much_ stronger then your so called 'boyfriend'. If you say one more thing, I will…" Noh was cut off when a blade was held up to her own throat. Her red eyes narrowed further, this was doing nothing to help her mood.

"Release her," it was a command; not one she was going to follow but a command none the less. A growl escaped her lips. Great, it was the 'redeemed' Uchiha, redeemed her ass. Nobunaga was going to hand him over to her to do as she pleased, but the damned council thought it would be better for Konoha if the Uchiha clan wasn't destroyed. Right, they just wanted the sharingan for themselves.

She was half tempted to just end it here and slit the poor girl's throat, but her eyes saw a figure standing behind the Uchiha, shadowed by the sunlight behind him. She could barely make out the form of Nobunaga, "Uchiha, we'll finish this tomorrow, a two-on-two match, you and Sakura vs. me and Noh."

Sasuke sheathed his katana and turned to face Nobunaga, "And why would I want to face you, dobe?"

"Because if you can't beat Nobunaga you'll never be strong enough to defeat Itachi. The match will be a death match, first on to kill their opponent wins. So what do you say, Uchiha? Or are you scared?" Noh said picking up on what her mate wanted.

"Hn, come Sakura, we have training to do." With that Sasuke walked out, Sakura quickly following. Noh's blade slipped back into its hidden sheath in the sleeve of her kimono. Oh yes, she was going to enjoy tomorrow's match. But first she had to get through this gathering of friends…then later tonight when she, hopefully, could introduce the Hyuga girl to the wonder that is Nobunaga. But first she'd have to ask Nobunaga, not that she didn't think he'd mind but he would mind if she didn't ask him before hand. Sometimes it wasn't a good idea to get Nobunaga angry, though half the time that anger led them to many a wild night.

Putting the incident behind them the remaining Konoha nin took their seats around the table, with her next to Nobunaga who was at the head. Surprisingly Hinata was sitting on the other of Nobunaga and…were those glares the Hyuga girl was sending her? My, my, this surely would be fun. But what wasn't fun, was the fact that Kiba Inuzuka was sitting next to Hinata and kept sending her, and any other female, a perverted grin. It may have been her kitsune instincts but she just hated the Inuzuka. It seemed the only one with brains was Kiba's dog companion, Akamaru. The dog kept barking at his human partner, trying to remind him about Noh, but she knew Kiba wasn't listening. Why he wasn't listening? Because he was nothing more then a dog in heat that's why.

Kiba placed his arm around Hinata's shoulders and said, "Come on, Hinata. Let's ditch these losers and go somewhere a little more private."

Hinata stiffened slightly, but otherwise remained calm, "No thank you, Kiba."

Kiba frowned and tightened his hand on her shoulder, when he spoke there was barely concealed annoyance, "Let's go, Hinata."

Noh was waiting, hoping that Hinata would do something to get Kiba off of her. But damn it, Hinata was too kind and caring for her own good. Raising her arm, the blades of Delicious Venom slipped out of its sheath from under her kimono. "I believe she said no, mutt."

A growl escaped Kiba's throat, "Just because you're the Hokage's wife, doesn't mean that you can tell me what to do." At this Akamaru tried to once again warn his partner just _who_ he was talking to, but once again Akamaru was ignored.

"I'm more then just the Hokage's wife, as I'm sure Akamaru can tell you." Here the giant dog gave a bark that sounded strangely like a, 'I told you so'. "Now, remove your hand before _I_ remove it for you," Noh said. She leaned over to whisper in Nobunaga's ear and when he nodded to her she almost squealed out her delight, but refrained from doing so. She stood up and walked over to stand behind Hinata. She then placed her foot on Kiba's shoulder and kicked him off to the side. She leaned back down and wrapped her arms around Hinata. "Tonight, I'm going to show you what it's like to see _all_ of Nobunaga." Hinata blushed in response and the two disappeared in a swirl of fire.

Nobunaga smirked, it wasn't his idea to take Hinata as a second mate. Since he was the last of both the Namikaze clan and the Uzumaki clan, he could take up to four more wives in order to help restore the clan; though it never really crossed his mind. No one had ever wanted anything to do with him, except for Noh; so he didn't give it much thought. But deep down he felt like he would be dishonoring both of his parents, and if he was anything, he was an honorable man, always have been and always will be. So perhaps taking Hinata as a mate wouldn't be such a bad thing. Since Noh was helping him with starting the Oda, then Hinata could help him in restoring both the Uzumaki and Namikaze. Either way, he had a feeling that both women would gladly help him.

The rest of the gathering was spent discussing the fight that he and Noh would be having against Sasuke and Sakura tomorrow. It didn't matter to him because he knew he and Noh would dominate the one-sided massacre that was sure to happen. Nobunaga had been waiting for an excuse to kill the Uchiha traitor…along with any member of the council that he knew was against him. In fact he was sure that Danzou would intervene no matter what happened in the fight. Greedy bastards, the entire council, it was because of them that the Uchiha was not killed when he returned. Though why Sasuke returned was beyond anyone's knowledge, Itachi was still alive so Sasuke couldn't have killed him.

But no matter what happened tomorrow he could use the work out that fighting against multiple enemies gave him…not that any of the ROOT ANBU could match his speed or strength. He had found out the hard way that when he became the demon lord of foxes, not a single opponent gave him a great challenge. True, Noh could give him a decent fight but they were always practicing and never really going all out against each other. As far as he was concerned all ninja were relying too much on ninjutsu, so they forgot about the basics of swordsmanship or even taijutsu. A ninja's first instinct is to put distance between himself and his opponent and try to get them with any number of jutsu. Because of this, their close combat skills diminished.

It was the same reason he knew that he would win against Sasuke. Sasuke may have some talent with the Kusanagi no Tsurugi he carried with him, but that didn't mean Sasuke knew the proper way to fight with a katana. It was the first lesson that Noh had taught him, "The katana is not separate from your arm, it _is_ your arm. To wield it is to use your own arm," she had said to him. She had taught him that wielding a katana was almost like a dance, fluid in motion yet deadly in attack.

But the real problem was that Sasuke was too arrogant for his own good. He thought that since the sharingan allowed him to copy and remember anything that he saw, that that made him more powerful. But it didn't and he didn't care to understand that. He didn't understand that all of the jutsu in the world would do him no good, if he didn't have the strategies to properly use them in battle. Sasuke relied on overpowering his opponent with powerful jutsu, and on weaker opponents that would work, but against Nobunaga…that was doomed to fail. Even the fire attacks that the Uchiha prided themselves for would be no good against him, but Sasuke would find out why the hard way tomorrow.

Normally Nobunaga would be taking this time to prepare for the fight tomorrow, but because the match wasn't until the afternoon, he still had plenty of time. Besides it wasn't often that everyone was able to gather like this. Many of them would be out on missions that he had assigned or he would be too busy in the Hokage's office. He didn't understand why he had to do paperwork for the most basic of things when the other council members could do it themselves. But then the council was a bunch of lazy bastards that didn't care one way or another. So half the time he left multiple shadow clones of himself to do the paper work while he spent time with Noh around the village.

Speaking of Noh, perhaps he should check up on her and Hinata before they get too tired to continue whatever it is they're doing later that night. Okay, perhaps he was more concerned about Hinata being worn out since she doesn't have a demon's stamina. So with that thought in mind, he disappeared from the restaurant in a swirl of flames. He reappeared to find quite a sight. He was in the master bedroom of the Oda clan house, where he found Noh and Hinata on the bed…in a tangle of limbs and completely naked. What surprised him even more was the fact that both Hinata and Noh were sleeping peacefully. Part of him wanted to know what they had done in such a short amount of time to cause them to be so exhausted, and the other part of him just wanted to let them rest.

Moving past the bed and onto the balcony, he gazed out over his village. The clan house was built on top of the cliff that was the Hokage Monument, though with a clever use of demonic genjutsu the house was all but invisible save to those who knew where to look for it. When he had taken the office of Hokage, he was torn between destroying all of Konoha, like Noh had wanted, and protecting it, as was the Hokage's duty. _Why,_ he had asked himself, _why protect those who only wish for your death? Why risk your life when all they wanted was for you to drop dead? Why continue when they wished for nothing but ill will towards you?_ The answer was simple…you don't. You don't protect those that wish you harm because then it would be like protecting an enemy. The only ones that you should protect are those that you care about and care about you in return.

So why then did he stay his hand? Why had he not unleashed the full power of a demon against the village? Perhaps more of his old self remained. The part of him that wanted nothing more then the villagers to acknowledge him for him and respect him. Perhaps that's why he stayed his hand, because some part of him wanted the villagers to respect and acknowledge him. Well they respect him now, but whether it was because of the power he wielded or that he was the Hokage and leader of the villager, he did not know nor did it matter to him.

He was brought out of his thoughts as a pair of slender arms wrapped around his waist. "Why don't you allow us help you relax a bit, hmm?" Noh whispered in his ear. He turned around to find a beat red Hinata still on the bed. Oh yes, this would certainly be an interesting night, he thought as Noh started to remove his armor.


End file.
